Extension-shoe.



H. EBBRLEIN.

EXTENSION SHOE. 'APPLIGATION TILED FEB. 20, 1912.

Patented Jan. 7, 1913.

a wzmtoz I /enry ZZerZain.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HEIVR-Y EIBERLEIN, F MASCOUTAH, ILLINOIS.

. nx'rnnsron-srron Specification of Letters Patentii.

App1ication filed February 20, 1912. Serial No. 678,772.

' To all whom it may concern:-

Be it known that I, HENRY EBERLEIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Mascoutah, in the county of St. Clair and State'of Illinois, have invented new and I useful Improvements in Extension-Shoes, of

which the following is a specification.

The object of the invention is tofprovide an extension shoe including a foot supporting means, an upper to receive the foot and leg of the wearer andpivotally connected otherwise rigid members removably secured to the upper and fixedly secured to the platform whereby the ankle of the wearer is caused to turn in the normal direction and the jar incident upon placing the heel upon the ground is cushioned. I

Other objects will appear and be better understood from that embodiment of my. invent-ion of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my device in applied position showing the outer or ordinary shoe in section and the wearer standing erect. Fig. 2 is a detail partly in v section showing the position of the parts in the act of stepping forwardly with the shortened limb.

The extension 5 which is of wood or other suitable light material, is shaped somewhat to the contour of the normal foot, so that its lower part may be readily inserted into the upper of an ordinary shoe of proper size. The toe piece 6 is slightly spaced from the portion 5 to which it is suitably connected, such as by means of a spring 7 in the form of a piece of resilient metal, suitably secured such as by nails 8 or the like, so that bending of the toe portion of the ordinary shoe 9 will be permitted while the wearer is walking, it being understood that during such operation, the spring will be alternately tensioned and relaxed. The platform 10 which forms the upper surface of the portion 5, inclines so as to conform to the angle of inclination of the sole deformed foot and has a pad 11 which provides a soft bearing surface for the foot. The provision of the pad 11 will in a great measure, reduce the jar incident to placing the heel in contact with the ground while walking, but to further reduce such jar, I arrange a rubber cushion 12 in a recess in the heel portion of the extension 5 and miter the inner end of this cushion so that it may interlock with the mitered inner end 13 of the recess. Any additional means such as plate, nails or the like, may be employed for additionally securing the cushion to the extension.

The upper 14 which is preferably of leather, is lasted onto the extension 5, it being suitably secured to the sole of said extension and additionally secured to opposite sides of the extension and slightly below the opposite edges of the platform 10 by any suitable means, such as a plurality of tacks 15. The upper whichis of such length as to extend a trifle below the knee of the wearer, is secured to the limb by suitablemeans such as a lacing 16, and at suitthrough which are inserted the straps 1818 which pass through the upper sections 19 of Patented Jan. 7,1913.

the ankle brace whose lower sections 20 are a suitably secured, such as byscrews 21, to the extension 5. The pivots 22 which connect I the sections 19 and 20 of the ankle brace, are located at the opposite sides of the ankle joint and are arranged so as to permit of relative movement of the sections 19 and 20 when the ankle is bent, such as while stepping forwardly, asshown in Fig. 2. Inasmuch as the rivets are positioned so as to admit of only forward or rearward benda ing of the sections 19 and 20, it will be mani fest, since the upper sections 19 and lower sections 20 are held against lateral movement, that lateral turning or bending of the ankle will be prevented. I

Although I have shown and describedone embodiment of my invention it is to be understood that I am not to be limited to the specific arrangement and construction of parts since various changes may be made, within the scope of the appended claim without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

\Vhat I claim as new is:

An extension shoe, including a platform having an inclined upper surface to receive the foot of the wearer, an upper lncasing said platform and extending materially HENRY EBERLEIN.

thereabove, and braces including jointed members pivotally connected at their meeting ends, means for securing the free terminal of the lower member of the braces to the platform, and means for movably securing the upper member of the brace to the upper, said latter means engaging said brace member adjacent the ends of the latter and Witnesses:

LOUIS J. Scrmvn, ARTHUR SOHUBKEYEL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

